Arjun Deshwal and Ankush's brilliant performances at the two ends of the mat propelled Jaipur Pink Panthers to an emphatic win over Tamil Thalaivas in vivo Pro Kabaddi Season 9 at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium in Hyderabad on Friday. Deshwal (12 points), V Ajith (9 points) and Ankush (5 points) played their part in a 41-26 win that lifted them to second place on the table.

Jaipur Pink Panthers’ successes this season have been on the foundations set by Arjun Deshwal, V Ajith and Rahul Chaudhari and the trio were noteworthy here too, racking up quick points early in the game to help the Panthers take an early lead. The quick start unnerved the Thalaivas and soon enough they were staring at an All-Out. It took a Super Tackle by Himanshu to curb the momentum. The Panthers inflicted their first All-Out with 10 minutes gone, to surge into a 14-8 lead. 

Deshwal and Ajith's raiding prowess was only one end of the battle. At the other end, the Panthers’ defence was rock solid while facing Narender, allowing the young raider just a single point in the entire first half from his eight raids. The Panthers went into the break leading 20-13.

Much like in the first period, the Panthers kicked off strong in the early parts of the second half and had the Thalaivas treading thin ice again. It took a Super Tackle by Himanshu on Deshwal to avoid a second All-Out. Buoyed by the resistance, the Thalaivas rallied with the raider-defender combination of Ajinkya Pawar and Himanshu chipping away at the lead slowly.

The resurgence didn't last too long though, and with Deshwal back on the mat, the Panthers inflicted a second All-Out to extend their lead to 33-23. From there, the Panthers never dropped their intensity, in the end getting an emphatic victory to move to second on the table.

Top Performers

Jaipur Pink Panthers

Best Raider - Arjun Deshwal (12 Raid Points)

Best Defender - Ankush (5 Tackle Points)

Tamil Thalaivas

Best Raider - Himanshu Singh (4 Raid Points)

Best Defender - Himanshu (4 Tackle Points)

Where to watch vivo Pro Kabaddi Season 9 LIVE?

Catch all the LIVE action from vivo Pro Kabaddi Season 9 on the Star Sports Network and LIVE streaming on Disney+Hotstar.